Rigoberto González was born in Bakersfield, California and raised in Michoacán, Mexico. The son and grandson of migrant farm workers, he is the author of sixteen books and the editor of Camino del Sol: Fifteen Years of Latina, and Latino Writing and Xicano Duende: A Select Anthology of Alurista's poetry. The recipient of Guggenheim, NEA, NYFA, and USA Rolón fellowships, winner of the Shelley Memorial Award from the Poetry Societry of America, the American Book Award, The Poetry Center Book Award, and the Lambda Literary Award, he is contributing editor for Poets and Writers Magazine, on the Board of Trustees of the Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP), and is Professor of English at Rutgers--Newark, the State University of New Jersey. He lives in New York City.